


Lingering Will

by zeroism



Series: KH:E bits and pieces [1]
Category: Kingdom Hearts
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Angst, Gen, it's part of a 10 year old fanfic that never got written, once again
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-02-21
Updated: 2019-02-21
Packaged: 2019-10-25 08:01:45
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,744
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17721281
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/zeroism/pseuds/zeroism
Summary: "Oh, I'm sorry, but I'm pretty sure I never had a son," and her voice soundssad, something like longing staining her words. "But that is a beautiful name, Sora."During a certain year, a boy comes back home and Chases after the shadows of a lost soul.





	Lingering Will

**Author's Note:**

  * For [Trinity Trio](https://archiveofourown.org/gifts?recipient=Trinity+Trio).



> AU context copypasta from the other fic:  
> \- Only KH1-CoM-KH2 are canon for this AU  
> \- That means nothing from BBS onwards. Absolutely none of it. Specially not Master Xehanort. Nor Ventus or Terranort.  
> Or you may read **[this relationship chart/plot summary](https://i.imgur.com/T6brZOd.png)** by the AU's co-author, [Rey](https://twitter.com/vvaniitas), for more in-depth context
> 
> This is less "the AU's canon" and more just my interpretation of the setup to KH:E, and it's technically spoilers to the "endgame" of the AU since all of this was going to be a secret up until over halfway through, but I wanted to write angst fanfic of a fanfic that doesn't exist and so I did

It was sunset when he arrived at Destiny Islands.

He was tired, exhausted even, guessing that the portal he'd used had taken more from him than he realized it would. But it was fine, it would  _ be _ fine. He was home, and if he was home, it meant things had gone back to normal. It meant the worlds had been restored and that everyone would be safe now.

Kairi was safe.

He didn't remember how, but he won. Releasing her heart had saved her. And— he'd be safe, too. 

After so many months, after seeing it overtaken by darkness, losing everything he held dear... He's  _ home _ .

He races until the sand under his feet turns to dirt roads and stones, until he's in the outskirts of the town, breathing in the saltwater air that almost makes him dizzy with nostalgia.

His fists pound on the door, so desperate to see her face after all those long months, he almost doesn't notice the door opening under his hand, last pound meeting nothing but air.

He nearly bursts into tears the second his eyes land on his mother.

" _ Mom! _ " He cries, barely stopping himself from launching himself forward right into her. "You're okay!"

His mother, however, only looks at him. _ Looks _ at him. "Hello there," she says, confusion clear in her tone. "I believe you have the wrong door, sweetheart."

The blood in his veins turns to ice.

"What? Mom! Don't even joke about that!" He gestures to himself, hands flailing. "It's me! Sora!"

The woman ( _ his mother _ ) smiles, a strange, bitter thing he'd almost never seen before. "Oh, I'm sorry, but I'm pretty sure I never had a son," and her voice sounds  _ sad _ , something like longing staining her words. "But that is a beautiful name, Sora."

"You—" He can feel his breath start coming in short. What's happening? Did staying in the darkness for so long  _ do something _ to his home? "You do have a son! It's me! That's my room, upstairs!"

His mother blinks, glancing upwards, as if she'd just been reminded that there was a bedroom in that direction. "How do you...? It was for babysitting a neighbors' kid, but..."

Babysitting? That's— what she remembers it as? Just babysitting? "You didn't babysit Riku! He'd come to sleep over, sure, but—!"

"Oh, do you know Riku?" His mother interrupts, brightening a little before a shadow falls over her face once again. "I see..."

He sputters, almost affronted by the question. "Do I know— of course I know him! Riku is—"

Riku.  _ Riku _ .

What is Riku?

A boy, pointing a wooden sword up, shouting at the sky, 'I'll protect you', with all the certainty and courage the boy behind him did not feel.

A teenager, teasing him, paopu fruit in hand, 'I know you want to try it', he says, and laughs, and runs, plans for the future so full of light.

An enemy, throwing a wooden sword at his feet, telling him to 'go play hero with this', voice and eyes so cold the boy they were directed to felt true fear.

A vessel for Ansem, the Seeker of Darkness.

"Riku is... I've known him for a long time," is what he settles into.

His mother's eyes turn soft, almost  _ pitying _ . "I understand. It must be very upsetting..." And he looks at her, because her words don't make a lot of sense, but they also make far too much sense. "Listen, Sora... It's almost night out. I don't know your parents, but they must be worried about you. I'm sure you miss him, but..."

He brings his hand to his scalp, pulling roughly at his hair, taking a deep breath. "I'm... Okay," and it's not okay, he's not okay, but something is  _ wrong _ , very wrong, and he's going to figure it out. He fought countless Heartless eye to eye and won. This is... just another battle. "I'll... come back. I'll come back and fix this, so just wait a little, okay?"

His mother nods, a little relieved smile on her lips. The smile she'd give him when he'd admit to not doing homework, or when he came back home after staying much longer at the play island than he should. "Of course, dear. I'll make you some tea once you feel better, alright?"

He races off as soon as the door closes, tears spilling from his eyes faster than he could think about the reason why.

His mother. The first time he hears her voice in months, and she doesn't even recognize her own son.

What did Riku do—?

No, no. This couldn't have been Riku's fault. Couldn't be what he wanted, what he intended. Riku had his faults, but he was...

Riku was...

He shakes his head, nods it with a new wave of determination, breathing deeply to will the tears to stop coming. His mom didn't remember him, but she remembered Riku. Maybe, because he wasn't here when the world was restored, he'd been forgotten; but that meant Riku had come back and was remembered.

He walks down the street and to the left, spotting that familiar balcony that he'd climbed over countless times in his childhood, feeling a combination of relief and dread at reaching that house again.

If Riku  _ did _ come back... what would they even say to each other? Would this still be the villain Riku who kidnapped princesses, or the Riku who swore to protect him under the shooting stars?

Would Riku have forgotten him, too?

He knocks on the door, with far less force and urgency than he had on his own, and waits.

The door opens to reveal a sophisticated-looking woman. Riku's mother. "Good evening. How can I help you?"

She didn't remember him either? He figured that would be the case, but it's still disheartening. "H-Hi, um," he mutters, somehow causing a terrible first impression on her for the second time in his lifetime. (At least this time he isn't covered in mud.) "Is Riku home?"

Her eyes widen immediately, and something about her expression makes it look like she'll shatter at the smallest movement. Really not a good sign. "You... Why would you ask that? You  _ know _ he's..." She sounds... almost angry, before grimacing and releasing a deep sigh. "Are you a friend from school?"

Something about the way she said that makes him feel like the ground had been pulled right under him. "I— yeah, a friend from school,"  _ and a lot more _ , he wants to say, but doesn't, because  _ what is Riku to him _ ?

She sighs again, a sound so unnatural coming from the once proud woman. "I'm sorry, but no, Riku isn't back home yet. At this point, it may be best to..."

"No," he exclaims, surprising even himself, both sets of eyes widening at the suddenness of it. "You can't give up now! Riku will come back, you'll see! I've been looking for him so I can drag him home, and I'm not about to stop!"

He doesn't know what possessed him to say that, because— would he really? Even after everything, the betrayal and pain, after being stabbed in the back and ripping his own heart out, would he still bring Riku back home?

Some part of him must believe the answer is ' _ yes, always _ '.

That gives the woman pause, a tiny, hopeful smile forming on her lips, and she nods. "Yeah... You're right. No matter where he is now... We'll find him." She lets out a sigh, still just as sad as before, but this one sounds lighter, somehow. "What's your name, boy?"

"I'm—" Who? Who is he, really? A ghost? A lost memory? "I'm Sora."

She bows her head. "Thank you, Sora. I will not give up hope."

He nods, pumping his fist. "Yeah! We'll find him, somehow!"

He leaves the doorstep of Riku's home feeling all sorts of conflicting things, but they are strangely numb. He's sure he should be feeling— hope, or grief, or rage. But they are more an echo at the back of his mind, now.

Riku still hasn't come back, so his theory was a bust. But really, his theory on why he'd disappeared from people's memories was the last thing on his mind.

The real worrying bit of information is that Riku is still somewhere out there, acting like a complete fool.

He had to find him... Knock some sense into him.

There was just— one thing he had to make sure. One thing he needed to check.

If Riku hadn't made it back, then maybe...

He clenches his teeth, making his way to the mayor's house in long strides, certainly looking more confident than he felt.

He finds her there, red hair a couple of inches longer than when he'd last seen her — _ had it really been that long?  _ — wearing her school uniform. Sitting on the doorstep, Selphie at her side talking her ears off. At least that much hasn't changed.

For a long while, he just watches. He doesn't want to talk to her, not really, the thought of having been forgotten by her, too, simply too heartbreaking to handle, but what if she hadn't? What if she remembered, and was just waiting for him to return? What if she felt just as displaced as he did for remembering that which no one else did?

He takes one step forward, almost resolved to go ahead and call out to her, when—

She looks at him.

Their eyes meet for... an uncountable amount of time. It could have been a second, but it felt like an eternity. Just him, watching those deep blue hues, and desperately  _ hoping _ .

Finally, finally, one of them moves— her eyebrows furrowing a little. He understands what that expression means.

There's no spark of recognition in her eyes.

She simply turns back to Selphie, continuing the conversation they'd never stopped.

He almost laughs, but at this point, all he really cares about is that she's safe, and smiling, and back home, where she belongs.

With a spring on his step, he turns away from the mayor's house, back in the direction of the beach.

He still had someone to account for.

 

* * *

 

"Something's wrong," cuts Naminé's soft voice through the silence.

Riku tilts his head towards her, dreading where the conversation might lead.

The flower-like pod in the center of the room hums, white and pure and cold, and Riku's learned by this point that he should not look directly at it, lest the emotions come flooding back.

"There are... new memories, new links being added to the chain... But I can't see them. I can touch them," she wrings her hands together, nervous about the implications, "But I can't see what I'm doing with them."

"Will this make it so you can't wake him up?" Riku asks, matter-of-factly. Because all that matters now is that the boy wakes up, mind intact, safe and sound.

She takes a moment to think about it. "...No, I will still be able to do it," she decides with a nod. "I'm just getting a strange feeling about it, that's all..."

"It's probably just... the Nobody," Riku twists his expression into a frown. "Don't worry. I'll fix it soon, and then you can continue to work without interruptions."

She nods, a little hesitant. "Yes, I'm sure you will."

 

* * *

 

Only a short time after the XIVth falls, a boy steps into the Castle That Never Was, the light of the Organization's incomplete Kingdom Hearts shining down on him and Xemnas, almost as if a barrier clearly separating the two.

"So you have effortlessly trespassed into our Castle," Xemnas' voice echoes, a deep and imposing rumble, "you step so confidently in front of me, dressed as one of us. And yet I suspect you are not here to apply for a position."

"You got that right, Nobody," the boy chuckles mirthlessly. "You  _ know _ why I'm here." 

"Do I, now? You expect too much of me." Xemnas questions, voice and expression dripping condescension. "Enlighten me, then. Why is it that you are here?"

"I'm missing something. Two very important things," he spreads his hands out, gesturing to his own self. "Right now, you have something that belongs to me. I want it back."

"Is that so," the man raises one eyebrow. "And if I give it to you, what will you give to us in return?"

"The other thing that I am missing," the boy brings a hand to his chest, closing a fist over his heart. "You've lost it, haven't you? I can help you find it."

"You certainly could," Xemnas crosses his arms, "but what reason do I have to believe you will?"

The boy shrugs. "You'll just have to trust me."

"You are serious," Xemnas smirks. "And yet you and I both know you will simply make off with the two of them as soon as you reach them."

"You can't know that," the boy dismisses casually. "I just said I'd help, didn't I? I can... feel it, even know, though I can't pinpoint it. If we figure out how to track it down, that..."

"That is certainly worth considering," Xemnas hums. "The ability to track the keyblade wielder would certainly prove useful."

The boy smirks, throwing his arms behind head; such a familiar gesture with an unfamiliar expression. "Sound good, right? You wash my hand, I wash yours, that sort of thing."

Xemnas nods, taking a couple of stairs towards the door further into the castle. "I will require some time to make a decision. I expect you have no problem with that?"

"Sure. I have all the time in the world," the boy smiles, an empty thing that almost makes Xemnas believe he is a Nobody. But he couldn't be...

"Tell me, boy," Xemnas turns fully to him, head tipted slightly upwards, looking down on him with the height advantage. "What is your name?"

The boy shoots him a grin. A nearly cruel thing, so similar to someone Xemnas once knew, so similar to his No. II.

With a flash of light, the Realm of Light's Kingdom Key appears in his hand.

"I am Sora."

 

* * *

 

When Sora and Riku return from the Realm of Darkness, they spend all their time together, attached at the hip to Kairi. They don't go back to their actual homes for nearly two days, until Kairi puts her foot down, reminding them of how worried their parents must be.

When Sora steps into his home for the first time in almost two years, the very smell of his furniture, the colors of he walls and the softness of the welcome rug makes him burst into tears before he's even closed the door.

His mother dotes on him for an entire week. She cries, and makes him pancakes every day, and lunch and dinner are all composed of his favorite meals. She invites Riku and Kairi over every day, and they spend their afternoons huddled together on his bed as Kairi catches them up on all the local gossip and school material they missed.

On the second week, his mother shoots him a morose glance.

"Sora, about that time you came back home, a few months ago..." She starts, brshakyand hands shaky. "I... I am so sorry I turned you away. I didn't remember you, I didn't remember my own son... I can't imagine how hard that must have been for you."

"Mom...?"

"I don't know how you did it, but— you really did fix it," she gives him a soft, sad smile, eyes shimmering with unshed tears. "I'm so proud of you. I'm...  _ so _ happy to have you back."

They hug tightly, his mother sobbing in silence into his shoulder, and Sora doesn't have the heart to stop it or tell her the truth.

He'd never come back to Destiny Islands in the past year and a half. He'd never met a version of his mother that didn't remember him.

Just the thought is enough to break is heart— he's sure he'd remember if it happened for real.

Her memories must have gotten mixed up...

 

* * *

 

With the Organization no longer in his way, Sora can finally have it to himself. How convenient that they'd combined into one neat package, Body and Heart united into one being.

But how complete are they without a Soul and Will? How do they walk around, calling themselves Sora, when he's right  _ here _ ?

He'll take it back. All that the Light stole from him.

Starting with his friends.

**Author's Note:**

> So... back in 2007 this was our idea for a new post-KH2 enemy: the leftover from the process of being split into Heartless and Nobody, a being with the singular goal to reunite with its body and heart and become Whole again. (Too bad Nomura later decided that becoming Whole was as simple as _killing the heart and body_ hfkjsdh that is absolutely not a thing in this AU)  
> The Lingering Will validated our speculation a lot even when the FM+ Secret Ending debunked a lot of our ideas... So in this universe, our friend Remaining William is the counterpart to Apprentice Xehanort, Xemnas, and Ansem, Seeker of Darkness.  
> Of course, our boy Sora is special in that his existence in CoM and early KH2 is only possible because Kairi "purified" his Heartless... So, basically, there are now two Soras running around :V


End file.
